


The True Gift

by Their_Destinys_Writer



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Christmas Fluff, Christmas Presents, F/M, ML Secret Santa, Marichat, One-Shot, Peacock Nathanaël Kurtzberg, Platonic Nathanette, Unspoken Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-16
Updated: 2017-12-16
Packaged: 2019-02-15 13:56:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,532
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13032594
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Their_Destinys_Writer/pseuds/Their_Destinys_Writer
Summary: Sometimes, the real gift is not the one that is material. Sometimes, it's the sacrifices we make to make those who we love happy.Part of the ML Secret Santa 2017 in Tumblr, for april-rainmay-blossom.





	The True Gift

**Author's Note:**

  * For [april-rainmay-blossom](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=april-rainmay-blossom).



> Merry Christmas @april-rainmay-blossom from your Secret Santa! I was so happy to get a fellow miraculer who loves Marichat as much as I do. I also saw you like a lot of AUs, so I tried a little Peacock Miraculous AU which I hope you like. Have a wonderful Christmas with the people you love!
> 
> And big thanks to the mods of @mlsecretsanta for organizing this wonderful event once again.

“This is amazing, I love it!”

Marinette gushed over her new present: a sketchbook. But it wasn’t just any sketchbook. This one had measurements drawn on the borders of every single page. A perfect gift for a fashion designer.

“Now we can sketch together,” the boy before her said, moving his red bangs away from his masked eyes.

“You’re really not letting that go, are you?” she asked, teasingly. The boy merely shrugged. “Thanks, Paon. It’s a lovely gift.”

A shy smile curved Paon’s lips. Straightening his blue tux-like suit, he cleared his throat and leaned against the cold railing.

“So, you want to… test it out?” he asked quietly. “See if the measurements help?”

“I would love to, but the lights are too dim up here,” Marinette reasoned, looking up at the lights hanging off her balcony, seeming dimer with the fallen snow. “Maybe next time. _But_ , you have to bring your own sketchbook. I won’t start using it until you’re sitting by my side making your own work.”

Paon gave a shy chuckle. “Yes, ma’am—”

“Happy Christmas, Princess.”

Marinette jumped at the sudden familiar voice and whipped her head towards the new visitor, crouching on top of the metal railing.

“Jeez, Chat, you almost gave me a heart attack,” Marinette breathed, a hand on her chest.

“A _paw_ logies,” Chat Noir said as he stepped down. “Didn’t mean to—ACHOO!”

The boy rubbed his nose as he glared at Le Paon. Marinette couldn’t help but roll her eyes.

“You don’t get to glare at him when you’re the one who barged in.” She crossed her arms.

“He wasn’t supposed to be here,” the blond mumbled.

Paon raised an eyebrow. “I didn’t know we agreed on anything.”

Chat Noir narrowed his eyes. He opened his mouth to say something, but ended up sneezing instead, saliva flying several meters away.

“You need a tissue?” Marinette asked, concern starting to invade her.

“I’m fine,” he grumbled, covering his mouth and nose.

“It’s fine,” Paon intervened. “I have to go anyway. But it was great seeing you, Marinette.”

“You too,” she nodded.

In a swift movement, the redheaded boy leaped to the roof side of the balcony and disappeared into the night. In the meantime, Chat Noir continued scowling to the direction the other superhero left.

“You know he had a crush on you for while, right?” he blurted out suddenly.

Marinette’s brows furrowed. “How would you know that?”

“Uh…” Chat Noir scratched the back of his head. “N-nevermind. Um… W-what’s that?”

Marinette followed the boy’s gaze to the sketchbook she was holding. Her eyes lit up, dismissing what he had said moments before.

“Just a present from Le Paon,” she said, proudly showing him the gift. “It has measurements on the edges of the pages to help me in my designing.”

“Oh,” Chat Noir uttered, lowering his gaze.

Marinette followed his view, to find he was holding a small blue box, with a golden bow.

“Is that for me?” she asked.

Chat Noir stared down at the box in his hands, tapping it hesitantly.

“You know what, I can do better,” he said suddenly, hiding the present behind him. “If you give me a day, I can get you something better. This… This sucks. It’s not cool.”

“No, don’t say that,” Marinette whispered, taking a step closer to the leather-clad hero. “If it comes from you, there’s no way it can be bad.” She then extended a hand. “Please.”

The boy bit his lip. At last, he relented and held out the small present. Softly, Marinette took it in her hands and slowly undid the golden bow that held it together. With the same care, she lifted the lid. She was greeted by what looked like a bracelet. A pink, blue, green and black handmade bracelet. Hanging from it were three charms: one of a pawprint, one of a dress and one of a heart. The heart between the colors blue and green, while the other two between black and green, and pink and blue.

“See,” Chat Noir started, “I know you like pink a lot, so I thought I would use it to represent you, and I was gonna put black to represent me, but it looked too plain, so I thought about how shiny your eyes are, so I added blue, and to make it balanced, I added green, for my eyes, and then I added the charms, like the pawprint, which is me, and the dress is you, because you like designing, and then the heart to signify our friendship, because I couldn’t think of anything else that could mean, like, I care about you, so I just put a heart.”

He took a deep breath as he finished rambling. Marinette could only stare at the thread, how it was fuzzy in parts, like Chat Noir had struggled to place it correctly. Yet, the charms properly divided each color, except for the pink and black, that were divided by a silver chained, attached to the thread.

“I know it’s not exactly useful, like Paon’s gift,” he commented, “but I thought you’d like it.”

Marinette finally looked up, noticing the nervousness crinkling his brows. How he was slightly shivering, but she doubted the cold had anything to do with it. She was still at a loss of words, but she knew that, if she didn’t say something soon, he was going to think she hated it.

“It’s beautiful,” she managed to push out. She took a breath to continue. “I can’t even begin to… It’s so personal…” She took the bracelet out from the box, and held it close to her heart. “I love it. It’s one of the most wonderful gifts I’ve ever gotten.”

By instinct, the designer stood on her toes and kissed Chat Noir’s cheek. Once back on the balls of her feet, she smiled up at him, hoping to reassure him that the words she spoke were true. Meanwhile, the boy’s cheeks took on a rosy color, and his lips parted.

“Would you mind?” she added, handing him the gift.

Chat Noir shook his head. “Sure,” he said at last. Careful not to mess it up with his claws, he hooked the bracelet from the silver chain. Once again, Marinette held it close to her chest, beaming at the boy.

“Thank you,” she said. For a moment, they simply stared at each other. Quiet. Smiling. Until… “Oh!” Marinette slapped a hand to her forehead. “I have something for you too.”

Ignoring his confused ‘really?’, Marinette disappeared through the trapdoor. The second she landed on her bed, she grabbed a rectangular green box sitting on it and rose back up to the balcony.

“Here.” The designer almost shoved the box in his hands.

For a moment, Chat Noir simply stared, awed. When the corner of his mouth turned upward, he pulled on the red ribbon and lifted the top off. Carefully, the boy took out a soft, black scarf.

“I made it myself,” Marinette said. “Black’s a good color on you. I thought it would bring out your eyes.”

Before she finished her sentence, though, Chat Noir had already draped the piece of clothing around his neck. He snuggled it around his cheeks, letting out a wistful breath.

“Thank you for warming a cat in need,” he sighed. “You always know what to do to make me stay.”

“Who said I wanted you stay?” Marinette teased. Chat Noir made a pout.

“Well, who said I _wanted_ to stay?” he teased back.

They stared at each other for a moment, until they couldn’t take it anymore and burst into laughter. Marinette really did love when Chat Noir stopped by. He always knew how to make her smile. And as she laughed, she held on to the bracelet hanging off her wrist, keeping it close to her chest.

* * *

Down, on the sidewalk outside the building, stood a quiet boy, smiling as he listened to the sounds of laughter coming from the balcony above.

“Are you sure this is what you want?” a small, blue being with long peacock feathers asked the redhead.

“Yeah,” he said, with a modest nod. “Those two are meant for each other.”

“People fight for love sometimes, you know,” the being said.

“I’m not going to fight for someone I rather have as a friend,” he said, now looking at his little friend. “Besides, the last thing we need is a division in the team. Don’t you think, Duusu?”

Duusu tilted her head. “I guess so,” she said.

“Come one.” The boy beckoned the kwami. “I still have a few more presents to give.”

The redhead started walking, the little goddess floating beside him.

“Can we get some peanuts first? I’m starving,” Duusu asked.

“Only if you promise not to eat the whole can before we get to the next house.”

“Ooohhh, come on. You’re killing me here, Nathanael,” the kwami whined.

But Nathanael merely laughed. A laugh full of warmth that could melt some of the snow that had built up on the sidewalks. Because he knew the little gal was just being dramatic, and she was more than happy to continue spreading the joy.


End file.
